


The Cat and His Shadow

by virdanfalls



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, Magic, alternate universe - Dragon Hunters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-06
Updated: 2017-11-06
Packaged: 2019-01-30 08:47:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12650160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/virdanfalls/pseuds/virdanfalls
Summary: As a dragon hunter of the Crow's Moon guild, Tsukishima prided himself on his elegance and level-headedness in battle. Above all else, he worked alone.  Others were too reckless and impulsive to match well with him. Kuroo, a fellow hunter, was no exception. And yet, after an encounter with a green dragon on a moonlit night, Tsukishima finds himself unable to think of anyone else.





	The Cat and His Shadow

Tsukishima had the situation under control. He was crouched behind a fairly large tree, undetected by the intelligent beast gracefully strolling through the woods near him. Its large neck craned slowly as it dipped to eat some herbs from the ground. It was gentle for its species. Usually green dragons were utterly vicious, driven by hunger and instinct to eviscerate their prey with the most efficient attack. They had chlorine gas as their breath weapon, a rapid and toxic killer. Tsukishima steadied himself. He would have to be quick.

He was poised to attack, knocking an arrow on his bow, when a shadow slid past him. It would have been imperceptible to an amateur, but Tsukishima was a veteran. His eyes quickly followed the movement and identified the disturbance.

It was a man, of similar age and build, with hair as dark as night and a smirk that rivaled even the most smug of assholes. He looked genuinely excited, intense to the utmost degree, as he loped towards the dragon quickly before it noticed him.

Tsukishima tensed in annoyance. What a dumbass, he thought to himself. He revealed himself from behind the tree and quickly dispatched an arrow at the dragon’s head. It flew quickly, and as he had anticipated, the creature swung its head to meet the noise. It was met with a scream, and began shooting its breath weapon thoughtlessly in pain. Toxic gas filled the immediate area. Tsukishima cursed the dumb man as he saw the gas approaching him. He’d be dead within minutes. Only rookies engaged green dragons in close combat.

As Tsukishima sighed and knocked another arrow from a safe distance, the fellow hunter tugged on a mask quickly and jumped onto the enraged dragon’s back.

The man sprinted from behind its neck and instantly attacked it with his knives as he went. Tsukishima realized each knife held a binding rune on it, slowing the creature’s movement with additional blade. Impressive magic for such a stupid person, he noted.

The creature was rendered completely immobilized, but still conscious, by the time the black haired hunter reached its head. It was over in a matter of seconds.

“Do you have a death wish?” Tsukishima called out acidically. “Or are you always this stupid?”

The man turned to face him, still wearing the mask. Tsukishima realized the design on the mask was that of a smiling cat. It seemed fitting, he decided.

“I wish a lot of things, but death isn’t one of them.” The man answered cheekily, his voice slightly muffled by the mask he donned. He jumped from the dragon’s back, landing steadily on his feet. “I take it you’re foolish enough to hunt dragons as well?”

“I hunt dragons.” Tsukishima replied steadily. “I’m not foolish about it. Not like you. Green dragons are ranged kills. Even the most inexperienced of the profession know that.”

“It seemed like my method was a lot more effective than yours, Glasses boy.”

“My method is more effective at staying alive, idiot cat.”

“Oho ho ho, we’ve got a snappy one here.” The man’s voice dripped with amusement. Tsukishima decided that he hated it. He felt like the other treated him like a child, a feeling that he never enjoyed. He spun around, walking away without another look in the other’s direction.

“Hey, c’mon now. Don’t you want your cut of the reward?” the man called to him as he walked away.

“You can keep it,” he droned indifferently. “Like I would share a reward with the likes of you. I work alone.” He was surprised to hear footsteps behind him. He halted and turned around, meeting gazes with the other hunter.

“Well, just so you know, the name’s Kuroo.” he said, pulling down his mask to reveal a toothy smile. “Of the Tooth and Nail guild.”

Tsukishima regarded him before muttering, “Tsukishima. From the Crow’s Moon guild.” he paused before continuing. “It makes sense that you’re from Tooth and Nail. You fight with little thought or elegance.”

“Aw, shucks! Thanks Tsuki!”

Tsukishima narrowed his eyes. “Don’t call me that.” He turned away again, and kept walking when Kuroo tried to talk to him again.

 

* * *

 

 

Tsukishima grimaced as his feet sunk into the mud. He hated swamps. He hated tracking down black dragons. And he especially hated doing all of it in midday. He always preferred to take down his prey at night, when his advantage was at its height. However, this particular dragon was a menace to Ixen, the nearby town to the south that it was terrorizing. Some greedy adventurers had plundered its labyrinth, taking all of the valuable gold and silver that it had stored away without killing the beast itself. It took its rage out on the nearest humans it could find, burning holes in the village with its acidic breath and destroying nearly everything in its path. Thus, Tsukishima was paid to kill it as soon as possible.

He used a guiding rune on his leather bracelet to find the entrance to the dragon’s cove. As he neared it, a black piece of fabric caught his eye. He froze as he recognized that stupid cat-like smile stitched into the fabric.

“Dumbass.” he exhaled deeply, before quickly entering the labyrinth. Tsukishima didn’t care if he found him dead. He repeated that statement to himself several times, but it didn’t reduce the growing dread in his stomach.

He followed tracks in the mud, left by both the dragon and by a certain smirking hunter. Kuroo’s footprints were light at first, barely perceivable. As Tsukishima followed them down the tunnel, they increased in pressure and size until he was sure he found the panicked footprints of a man trying to escape. The walls were singed with fresh acid, the acrid stench clinging to Tsukishima’s throat. He realized he was gritting his teeth when he felt a stab of pain in his jaw. He took a moment to lean on the wall and breath deeply. In this moment of calm, he heard a whimper from the down the tunnel.

Tsukishima moved hastily toward the noise. Down the pathway, he saw an alcove. A shape shifted at the sound of his light footsteps.

“Kuroo?” he whispered.

“Glasses, you came to help!” he responded in a pained breath. “Am I glad to see you.”

“Are you hurt?” Tsukishima asked, kneeling beside the other hunter.

“It got my arm and leg with some of its acid.” Kuroo wheezed, pain clear in his tone and posture. “I neutralized it with an antidote, but I’m going to need medical attention soon.”

Tsukishima stood up, and Kuroo understood his plan from his stance.

“This one is crafty,” Kuroo informed quickly, before Tsukishima left. “It will anticipate your movements. It’s senses are sharp, and it has no sense of restraint.”

“Understood.” Tsuki muttered, turning towards the dragon’s lair.

“Tsuki?” Kuroo asked softly, his voice weak with pain.

“Yes.” Tsukishima waited for him to speak, stopping midstep.

“You’ll come back, right?”

“Of course.” Tsukishima turned his head slightly to meet the other hunter’s gaze. “Just stay here and wait, alright?.”

Kuroo smiled weakly. “Alright.”  
  


* * *

 

 

Tsukishima carried him on his back on the walk home. Kuroo was too weak to walk, however, so he shouldered the weight without complaint.

They talked about the dragon on the way back to town. Tsukishima recounted a play by play of the fight, garnering some real laughter and energy from Kuroo. The black haired hunter admitted that he was frustrated to miss out on such a formidable opponent. Tsukishima sympathized, and recounted some of the times that he had missed out on kills because of a stupid mistake or miscalculation. Tsukishima wasn’t sure why he felt the need to comfort the other hunter. He did, however, realize that he no longer hated the sound of his amused voice.

Kuroo fell asleep on his back, as sluggish and lethargic as an elderly cat. When Tsukishima had arrived at the local infirmary, he set him down softly so as not to wake him. The black haired man sighed into his pillow and rolled over, immediately missing the steady back he had been snuggled into just moments before. Tsukishima ignored whatever feelings those actions had prompted, and instead walked to the the nearest cleric. He explained the exact type of acid that had afflicted his fellow hunter, and even pressed some herbs into the cleric’s hand, asking her to use high quality ingredients to ensure the man’s full recovery.

“Do you want to leave your contact information?” the cleric asked as he began to leave. “In case he wakes up asking for you?”

Tsukishima swallowed hope, and the other mixed feelings that pooled in his throat. “No.” he responded curtly, turning away before he was asked again.

 

* * *

 

 

Months passed without another encounter from the smiling hunter. Tsukishima ran into other members of the Tooth and Nail guild - a hunter nicknamed the “Mad Dog” with the fighting style to match, a hunter with spiky red hair and observant eyes who fought purely on instinct, even a pair of hunters, an energetic and owlish man with spiky hair and his silent but elegant partner with ruffled black hair. Tsukishima found himself wondering about Kuroo each time he spotted that iconic sigil, and yet, each time he tried to ask about the man’s condition, the words died in his throat.

He probably has stopped hunting, he thought. He may have gone into magic. His spells were always well-crafted. Maybe even into medicine. Though he was impulsive, the hunter wasn’t completely stupid.

Tsukishima found himself thinking about him too much. Each time he tried to stop, a headache pounded into his temples.

Maybe I should stop hunting, he sighed. He was, yet again, in a tight situation. A crazed red dragon had trapped him in its labyrinth. He was currently crouched beneath a clattering of rocks, squished up too far for the dragon to swipe at him. He was wrapped in a flame resistant cloth, but the dragon’s constant stream of fire left him struggling for cool air. He was cursing to himself when he heard a familiar amused voice.

“Oooh Tsuki, you’re not usually so clumsy with your captures.”

“No fucking way.” Tsukishima muttered turning his head and catching a shadow moving swiftly across the cavern. The dragon ceased its fire and swung around to face the new threat. Before it could react, a knife was plunged into its leg with a binding rune.

Tsukishima took this opportunity to escape his hiding spot, leaving his heat resistant cloth behind. He quickly drew his blade, which he had recently imbued with frost magic. With one swift motion, he dispatched an eldritch slash at the great red beast before him, weakening it greatly. Kuroo finished it with two more binding knives, rendering the creature immobilized but still alive.

Tsukishima calmy sheathed his blade and regarded him warily at first. The man looked a bit more tired, a bit more gaunt, but overall healthy. Alive, and still working as a hunter. Tsukishima was filled with relief, yearning, guilt - all of which he wanted to ignore, to repress. After several moments of quiet consideration, recalling the months of solitude and wondering, he tossed aside his pride in favor of long-repressed emotion. In two steps he reached Kuroo and embraced him tightly.

“Hey, hey Tsuki if you missed me, you could’ve just said so!” the man sputtered, his face turning red.

“I missed you.” Tsukishima said quietly, turning his head to meet gazes with the other hunter. “I didn’t know if you recovered or what…” he paused sadly. “I should’ve checked on you. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, real-” Kuroo was cut off as Tsukishima leaned in to quickly peck his lips. As the blonde drew back, the other hunter stammered with a bright blush on his face, “H-hey, you can’t just do that and not say anything else! Come back-” Tsukishima obliged, returning to give him a deeper kiss. His hands drew up to caress Kuroo’s cheek, while Kuroo’s went for his hair, pulling lightly, playfully. They remained like that for a few minutes, until the angry huffing of the nearby dragon brought them back to reality.

“Shit.” Tsukishima said, scratching his head. “We probably should wait until after we handle the dragon.”

“I can’t help it if I’m just that desirable,” Kuroo quipped in jest. Tsukishima elbowed him lightly, only deepening the smirk on the other hunter’s face.

After delivering the dragon to the nearest bounty office and splitting the reward, the two found the nearest bar to catch up in. Kuroo explained that it had taken a few months to recover and regain his previously sharp battle reflexes. He showed Tsukishima the scars on his right arm and leg and thanked the blonde for his help that night. Tsukishima only shook his head and thanked him for the help with the red dragon.

The two ended the night laughing and holding hands, falling asleep next to each in other in a shared inn room. Tsukishima realized it was so much cheaper to share a bed with another person as he fell asleep across from the black haired man with the cat like smile.

 

* * *

 

Though stories of inter-guild partnerships were rare, the rumors of the cat and his shadow began the spread across the countryside. A promising young dragon hunter who donned a threadbare grinning cat mask was greatly skilled in close combat and sudden dispatches of damage. His silent companion, unwavering as the moonlight and calm as midsummer wind, steadily provided him ranged and magical support, ensuring his safety during his risky fights with dragons. As a partnership of dragon hunters, they were amongst the most well-known for their balance, strategy and deeply ingrained trust. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry it was a bit short, but I hoped you liked it nonetheless. I wanted to focus more on the kurotsuki fluff as opposed the fights against dragons.


End file.
